KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Iran has executed two Afghan nationals in recent days, according to Iran Human Rights (IHR), a Norway-based group monitoring human rights violations in the country.
The executions reportedly took place last Wednesday at Ghezelhesar Prison, one of Iran’s largest and most notorious detention facilities.
IHR said one of the men was hanged on charges of rape. The charges against the second individual were not clear at the time of reporting. Their identities were not disclosed.
The two were among seven people executed in the prison that day, IHR added.
Iran has one of the highest execution rates in the world, routinely using the death penalty for a wide range of charges, including drug offenses, murder, and political dissent.
While the Iranian government does not disclose the number of foreign nationals it executes, rights groups have reported a sharp rise in executions of Afghan citizens since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021.
According to IHR, Iran executed 16 Afghan nationals in 2022, including a woman and a minor. That figure rose to 25 in 2023 and more than tripled to at least 80 in 2024. So far in 2025, at least 25 Afghan nationals have been executed.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have condemned the growing use of the death penalty in Iran. Amnesty says capital punishment violates the right to life under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls for its total abolition.
